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Sports

Most of the major sporting codes played in New Zealand have English origins. Golf, netball, tennis and cricket are the four top participatory sports, soccer is the most popular among young people and rugby union attracts the most spectators. Victorious rugby tours to Australia and the United Kingdom in thelate 1880s and the early 1900s played an early role in instilling a national identity, although the sport's influence has since declined. Horse racing was also a popular spectator sport and became part of the "Rugby, Racing and Beer" culture during the 1960s. Māori participation in European sports was particularly evident in rugby and the country's team performs a haka (traditional Māori challenge) before international matches.

New Zealand has competitive international teams in rugby union, netball, cricket, rugby league, and softball and has traditionally done well in triathlons, rowing, yachting and cycling. The country has performed well on a medals-to-population ratio at Olympic Games and Commonwealth Games. New Zealand is known for its extreme sports, adventure tourism and strong mountaineering tradition. Other outdoor pursuits such as cycling, fishing, swimming, running, tramping, canoeing, hunting, snowsports and surfing are also popular. The Polynesian sport of waka ama racing has increased in popularity and is now an international sport involving teams from all over the Pacific. [2]

CONCLUSION

In conclusion I would like to summer up everything that I have told above.

^{New Zealand stretches 1600 km from north to south it consists of two large islands around which are scattered a number of smaller islands, plus a few far-flung islands hundreds of km away. The North Island (115,000 sq km) and the South Island (151,000 sq km) are the two major land masses. A notable feature of New Zealand's geography is the country's great number of rivers. The Waikato River in the North Island is New Zealand's longest river, measuring in at 425 km. New Zealand also has a number of beautiful lakes; Lake Taupo is the largest and lakes Waikaremoana and Wanaka are two of the most beautiful. As is the case for most Pacific islands, New Zealand's native flora & fauna are, for the most part, not found anywhere else in the world. And, like other Pacific islands, NZ's native ecosystem has been dramatically affected and changed by plants and animals brought by settlers, mostly in the last 200 years.}

^{Much of New Zealand's unique flora & fauna has survived, but today over 150 native plants -10% of the total number of native species - and many native birds are threatened with extinction.}

^{The governmental structure of New Zealand is modeled on the British parliamentary system, elections being based on universal adult suffrage. The minimum voting age is 18 and candidates are elected by secret ballot.}

^{New Zealand has a multi-faceted arts scene with both Maori and Pakeha engaged in all kinds of traditional and modern arts. Maori arts are dramatic in many ways, and they include various arts that people of European backgrounds might not be familiar with.}

^{New Zealand has an active literary scene, with a number of modem authors and a few old classics. Probably the most internationally known New Zealand writer is still Katherine Mansfield (1888-1923).}

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Bain, Carolyn. “New Zealand. Lonely Planet”, 2006;
2. Garden, Donald. “Stoll, Mark. ed. Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific: an environmental history. Nature and Human Societies”,  2005;
3. Longman Dictionary of English Language and Culture Pearson Educated Limited, 1998;
4. Mein Smith, “Philippa . A Concise History of New Zealand. Australia: Cambridge University Press”, 2005;
5. Spotlight on English-speaking countries N.Timanovskaya , изд. Автограф, 1998.